Anger at disability centre's fate

Parents of children with learning disabilities in Oswestry are fighting to save the town's Victoria Centre.

Shropshire County Council plan to close the building after moving its services to smaller halls in the area.

The Friends of the Victoria Centre claim the council has reneged on a promise to replace the centre with new purpose-built buildings.

But the authority says it is part of a modernisation programme for day care services across the county.

Community site

Chairman of the support group, Brenda Jones, said: "At the moment there isn't anywhere in Oswestry that we can use.

"Lots of places have been thought about and the Victoria Centre has tried to get hold of them but they've been unsuccessful.

"It looks very much like we'll be out into the villages and community centres in the villages around the Oswestry area."

But Adrian Johnson, operations manager at the county council, said: "We are moving away from the old style large centralised buildings to smaller ones in the community.

"The original description of what Victoria Centre would be replaced with did suggest it would be two new units.

"Since then our experiences at our centre in Shrewsbury has shown us that people with learning disabilities benefit far more from being part of a jointly used community development."